“‘Raw Data’ Is An Oxymoron,” Edited by Lisa Gitelman

In this 2013 collection of essays, edited by NYU media historian Lisa Gitelman, contributors discuss the cultural history of the concept of data, and elaborate on its past and possible future impacts in fields from science to finance. One essay probes the disagreements that arise in attempting to “reduce” various social scientific variables to data, and another details the prehistory of modern databases in the form of index card systems.